


Fate/Reforged

by Knight_Of_Treachery



Category: Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms
Genre: Follows alternate timeline of F/SN, Non-Graphic Rape/Non-con in the first chapter, The Explicit rating is primarily for violence, more tags may be added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:02:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 15,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27419965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Knight_Of_Treachery/pseuds/Knight_Of_Treachery
Summary: Twenty years after the conclusion of the Fifth Holy Grail War in Fuyuki City, the Lesser Grail has been reforged, and the cycle of violent and bloody competition for its power has begun anew. Once more, seven masters will be selected. Once more, seven heroic spirits will be summoned. Who will win the Holy Grail? Who will even survive?
Relationships: Minor Emiya Shirou/Tohsaka Rin
Kudos: 1





	1. Summoning, pt. 1

Einzbern Castle, Germany: January 28, 2024

It was snowing. Of course, it was always snowing here, this time of year. Ivo's breath created thick, white clouds of fog in the air before him. The elderly man clutched the shoulder of his younger assistant, using the youth's sturdy body to steady himself. From the edge of the forest, the pair stared across the grounds at the impressive castle standing tall above the trees blanketing the landscape surrounding it.

It normally wouldn't have been easy to get this far. The castle of the Einzberns was well protected by countless powerful bounded fields, not to mention the ferocious wildlife inhabiting the forest. Yet, thanks to the pair's third companion, getting this far had been far too easy. It was almost laughable, how easily the defenses of one of the most powerful mage families in the world fell when compared to the might of a Servant. The Servant was invisible right now, sticking primarily to spirit form in order to remain undetected, but he was there, cautiously watching over his master and his assistant. With a single word, however, Ivo von Shweiz summoned his Servant to his side, the heroic spirit manifesting in physical form once more to receive his orders.

Ivo referred to his Servant only by the name of his class, as was customary during a Holy Grail War, though the bloody ritual had not yet technically begun.

"Archer." The elderly man said hoarsely, his voice gruff from the cold air.

"Yes, master?" Archer replied, though he already knew what would come next. The old man hadn't stopped talking about this moment since he first summoned Archer the night before. He was simply waiting for his master's command.

"Do it." The man said, a malicious smirk stretching across his face as he watched numerous homunculi come bursting out of the gates of the castle, the guards at last deciding to confront the intruders. Each of them bore the same face, and the same long, white hair and red eyes. There was no doubt they were beautiful. It was a shame he had to destroy them. Ivo bore them no ill will. No, it was the masters of this castle that Ivo wanted dead. The beautiful Einzbern guards were simply collateral damage. "Do it now, Archer." He repeated, and watched as the Servant stood up straight, his golden hair shimmering in the sunlight. He flexed his shoulders for a moment, then took up a firing position with his left arm extended out in front of himself while his right arm nocked an invisible arrow onto the invisible bowstring, and pulled back.

Archer exhaled, and pointed towards the sky as a bow and arrow made of solid gold materialized in his hands. His lips moved as though he were saying something, though Ivo was unable to quite make out the words. Still, even without hearing them, the mage knew that Archer was activating his Noble Phantasm. Even as powerful as the Servant was, nothing less than a powerful Noble Phantasm would be able to shatter through the Einzberns' defenses.

As soon as Archer finished reciting the name of his Noble Phantasm, he loosed the arrow, letting it disappear into the blue of the late morning sky. Barely a moment later, a torrent of fire descended upon the Einzbern castle, stalled only briefly by the bounded fields protecting it before shattering them and incinerating the structure to the ground, along with all of its inhabitants. It barely lasted a minute, but when the column of fire died down, it left only a scorched landscape and the smell of flames. The cold air had been blasted away by the now towering inferno, and Ivo calmly extended his hands towards the fire, rubbing them together as if he were simply warming himself at a camp fire.

"Ah, now that's better." He said with a smile, his own red eyes reflecting the glow of the flames as he soaked in the warmth. "I always did much prefer warmer climates, anyway."

"Are you satisfied, master?" It was Ivo's apprentice that spoke this time, rather than Archer. He no longer supported Ivo, now they'd had a moment to rest from the long hike through the forest. He simply stood there, a few feet away, his arms folded behind his back as he stared at the fire that would soon spread through the forest.

Ivo didn't answer for a minute, but instead watched as the scorched husk of one of the homunculus guards clawed her way out of the fire, screaming in agony, sobbing for help that would not come. Instead, Ivo simply lowered himself to his knees and stared at her for a moment, only to sigh and look back at Archer.

Archer nodded to Ivo, though he rolled his eyes at the old man's sentimentality, and quickly shot an arrow through the head of the homunculus, ending her suffering.

* * *

_The Diet Building, Tokyo, Japan: January 30, 2024_

Councilor Akihiro Yoshida sighed as he stretched, having just come out of a prolonged meeting with some of the other Councilors regarding a bill being discussed by the Diet. He didn't get it. What was the point of discussing it? The House of Representatives could just overrule them even if they decided not to adopt the bill. So why even bother? As a member of the upper house, he had very little political power beyond what the lower house allowed him.

Yoshida rubbed his temples to fight off the migraine that had been throbbing in his head for hours now, wishing for nothing more than some kind of headache remedy in that moment.

"Councilor!" He heard the grating voice of his secretary as she rushed up to him as fast as her heels would permit. He was almost tempted to turn and walk away, and ignore her. Still, something made him stay. Something nagged at him, saying that maybe he needed to hear what she actually had to say.

"Yes, what is it, Miss Tanaka?" Yoshida asked, his steely eyes narrowed in aggravation behind his square-framed glasses. He ran a hand through his slicked-back raven-colored hair in exasperation as he waited for the woman to speak.

"Sir, I... I just received a report..." Miss Tanaka said quietly, looking around to make sure no one was within earshot. She then leaned in, cupping a hand around her mouth as she whispered to him. "A report from the Mage's Association..."

Yoshida's eyes widened ever so slightly as Tanaka's hushed words, only to narrow again in irritation. "How many times have I told you not to approach me concerning _them_ in public!" He growled through gritted teeth. Instantly, Tanaka's face reddened, and she stepped back, her head hanging in shame.

"Y-yes s-s-sir!" She squeaked, her back hunching and her knees bending inwards slightly, as if she was trying to make herself smaller under his reproachful glare. "I'm s-sorry, sir!"

"Are you? Well, I suppose that makes it all better, then!" Yoshida snarled, his hand twitching with the urge to- no. He had to keep himself under control for now. They were too exposed out here.   
Fortunately, his limo pulled up at that exact moment. Without another word, Councilor Yoshida opened the door and pointed inside, a silent command that was instantly obeyed by the secretary. He followed her into the backseat, and closed the door a little rougher than normal.

Inside the car, the windows were all tinted so that no one outside would be able to see inside, though they could still see outside. Once they were safe from outside prying eyes, Yoshida glared at Tanaka, who lowered her eyes, her cheeks and chest flush as she nodded quietly. "Drive." He said simply to the limo driver, who sighed and nodded as he quickly raised the partition, giving his boss some privacy.

Finally alone, Tanaka slowly laid herself across Yoshida's lap, surrendering to his will.

Yoshida wasted no time in pulling Tanaka's skirt down, along with her panties, resting a hand on her bare ass. "The severity of your punishment depends entirely on the importance of your message." He said simply to his secretary, who quickly rushed to answer.

"Yes, sir. I understand. It was an urgent message from your contact. He said that something happened in Germany. Something big. Some family called the "Einzberns" were exterminated two days ago." Tanaka said quickly.

Yoshida froze up at the news, his eyes wide in shock. "Is that so...?" He muttered under his breath. Then, his shocked expression faded slowly into a look of glee, and he stared down at Tanaka's bare ass, now squeezing it roughly.

Tanaka bit her lip, barely able to stifle the moans threatening to spill forth at the rough squeezing. It was clear to Yoshida that she was enjoying the treatment. But then, of course she was. She was always a willing participant in his "games". He may enjoy getting rough, but he wasn't a monster, after all.

"So the Einzberns are no more, then?" Yoshida laughed, smacking Tanaka's rear a few times, though there wasn't much bite in his smacks, just enough to add a bit of color to her pale skin. "So much for the power of their "ancient lineage"! I've always said that the length of a bloodline means nothing! And now, this just proves it! Hundreds of years, and several generations of tradition and efforts, all eliminated in a single day!"

"Then you are... pleased, sir?" Tanaka asked, her eyes clenched shut as she struggled not to moan, letting out shaky, raspy breaths.

"More than pleased, Tanaka. As a matter of fact, I think we'll forego your punishment this time. Still, next time, I won't be so lenient." Yoshida said with a smirk as he turned her around, placing her face down in the seat as he rose to his knees behind her, undoing his pants.

* * *

_ Fuyuki City, Japan: January 31, 2024 _

In the dark alleys of Fuyuki City, countless pedestrians were able to hear the screams and cries for help of a young woman, yet no one bothered to investigate and see what was happening. They all knew better than to try and help, to risk their own neck. Their hearts went out to whatever poor soul had the misfortune of catching the eye of some local thug, but no one was actually willing to step in and put a stop to whatever was happening. Besides, they all thought, it's probably just a mugging. If the woman simply gave the thug her money, it would all be over quickly, and she'd be able to just go about her life. Really, it wasn't any of their faults that she was too stubborn to give the thug her money.

Yet what was happening was far worse than some random mugging.

Jiro Goro sobbed and tried to claw herself to freedom, yet the group of young men who were pulling at her clothing had other plans. They laughed and poked at her, teasing her for her plain, unimpressive figure. Her small breasts, her flat rear end, everything was mocked. And yet, everything was merely a tool for their amusement. Her clothes were violently ripped to shreds as two of them held her down, watching three of their friends strip her of her dignity and slowly leave her bare for their eyes.

"Look at her! The little whore shaves! She probably goes around _expecting_ to get railed in some alley!" One of the young men laughed, and she wanted to scream at them that, no, it wasn't true. But now, her mouth was covered by one of the ones pinning her down. Evidently, he was getting tired of her screaming.

"Yeah, probably!" One of the others agreed with a snort. "I mean, look at how she dresses! It's like she's _asking_ for it!"

"How she dresses? You mean how she _was_ dressed!" They took turns talking about her like she wasn't even there, speaking so vulgarly, and soon, Jiro began to just... surrender. After all, what was different here than any other part of her life?

Jiro came from a long line of mages. Eleven prior generations of them, in fact, making Jiro a member of the twelfth. However, she was only the second-born mage in that generation. Her elder brother, Asahi, was the first-born, and therefore, the chosen heir of the Goro lineage. As such, everything was given to him. The teachings of their bloodline, passed down through the generations. The Goro family magic crest, containing the power and knowledge amassed over the decades by their family. The wealth and recognition provided by their name. Their family's representation in the Mage's Association. Even their parents' love and affection. Their time and attention. All of it was Asahi's by birthright. What was left for Jiro?

Nothing. And she had accepted that for years. It was simply the hand fate had dealt her.

Academically speaking, Jiro wasn't the most gifted student, either. She was impressive, sure. Even managed to keep her grades in the high "A" range consistently. Yet, just as within her family, she was doomed to remain "second best". In everything academically, she was constantly beaten by _that_ girl... Top of the class. President of the student council. Captain of the archery club. Everything Jiro did, _she_ was there to take first place, leaving Jiro perpetually in _second_.

Jiro... Even her name meant "second".

And she had accepted that for years. It, just as her position in her family, was simply the hand fate had dealt her.

She'd had a crush on a boy for a couple years, and had finally gotten him to notice her. And then, just when she thought she had won his affection, He had turned around and asked another girl out, instead. Second best once again.

It was simply the hand fate had dealt her, though. Who was she to argue with fate?

Why was this any different? Even this... Even this horrible night was simply part of the hand dealt to her by fate. It was cruel, yes. But the face of fate itself, what was Jiro? How could she rightfully complain? What right did she have to argue with the universe?

Clearly, fate had decided that she was to become nothing more than a play thing for these five young men. If they decided to kill her after they were done with her, then at least she wouldn't have to live with the shame. If they decided not to end her life, then she clearly must have done something in a past life that dictated she should have to live with the memory of this night. Either way, it was out of her hands. She was nothing more than a pawn for fate.

She continued telling herself this even as the first of the five pushed into her, tearing through her maidenhead with force, and began taking her like some cheap prostitute. She lay limp there, dead inside as he had his way with her. 

If only she had been the first born, if only her family had seen fit to actually teach her some of their magecraft... Maybe she could have made use of the magic circuits within her, and maybe she could have fought these boys off. Maybe she wouldn't have had to suffer this...

It was painful. She enjoyed none of it. Her back was bruised and scraped from the hard concrete under her, and she would definitely be covered in bruises from the rough treatment. Her eyes were completely dry of tears by the time the first one finished, and the second one took his place. She looked at the sky, and the walls of the buildings around her, at the graffiti on the walls, some of which was probably done by these very boys. Anywhere but at her assailants as she simply accepted the hand fate had once again dealt her.

...

But no. No, somewhere in the back of her mind, buried under the years of refusing to let herself desire anything more than what she was already given, a small voice screamed at her. Screamed for her to simply reach out and take what she knew should be hers. Screamed for her to fight back against these boys, and against her parents and brother who ignored her, against the class president who always seemed one step ahead of her. it was that voice inside her that screamed out for help, even though Jiro was refusing to acknowledge it.

And as Jiro's eyes found the circle graffitied on the wall near her, it was that voice inside her that screamed the loudest.

It was almost funny, really. These boys likely had no idea what they had painted on the wall. They'd probably seen it in some history textbook or something and painted it because it looked cool. Yet, somehow, they had managed to stumble upon the design for a legitimate summoning circle. And as that voice in Jiro screamed for help, her magic circuits, which had lay unused beneath her skin for years, finally sparked to life.

She felt a massive drain on her energy, and at first, she assumed it was simply the last of her willpower leaving her body. But the drain continued, and she could see a faint glow emanating from the wall next to her. Evidently, the boys had noticed it, too, for she felt the one currently using her body come to a complete stop.

"Whoa... what the...?" One by one, the boys all stood up, eyes fixating on the magic working in front of them.

The energy continued to drain from Jiro, though she simply lay unmoving on the ground.

The light grew in intensity, and she could feel the hair on the back of her neck standing on end, as if an electrical current was running through her body.

She simply stared at the red light projecting from the circle on the wall, and words came to her mind, unbidden. Maybe she'd read them somewhere before? She didn't have the faintest clue, but she couldn't resist the urge. Something compelled her to say them aloud.

"Yet... you shall serve me with your eyes clouded by chaos... For you would be one caged in madness... And I... I shall wield your chains..." Jiro said weakly, barely having the energy left to speak. "From the seventh heaven... attended to by... three great words of power..."

"What the hell? Is she doing this?!" One of the boys exclaimed, eyes wide in fear as they started to back away slowly. "She's a... she's a witch!"

"Come forth from the ring of restraint... protector of... the holy... balance..." Jiro said, slowly beginning to lose consciousness.

As soon as she finished, a large _crack_ like thunder could be heard, and the dark alley was bathed in a blinding red light. Then, everything was dark, and quiet again. The only sounds that could be heard were the traffic in the distance, and the terrified trembling of the five boys who had been about to take turns using Jiro's body.

After a long moment, a deep, masculine voice could be heard from the shadows. Jiro couldn't see him, but she knew he was there. "I ask you this just once: Are you my master?"

"Holy shit!"

"The witch summoned a demon!" The thugs cried out in fear, and began to scamper away.

Jiro felt weak, drained. Drained by both her attack, as well as the summoning ritual. She knew it wouldn't be long now before she lost consciousness. Yet, despite what had just happened to her, despite what had been happening to her, a peaceful smile stretched across her face.

For fate had just dealt her a new hand. And for once, the cards were in her favor.

"Yes. I am your master." She said softly, groaning as she forced herself to sit up. "And you are my Servant."

"Very well. I am the Berserker-class Servant, and I have responded to your summons. Now that the contract has been sealed, what is your first order, master?"

Jiro closed her eyes for a moment. She could still hear those boys fleeing in terror, and a malicious idea came to her. Her peaceful smile became a sinister smirk as she realized that a bunch of humans had just seen magic at work. They couldn't have that, after all...

"Kill them. Kill them, Berserker. And... do it slowly." She commanded, feeling a wave of new strength washing over her, though her energy was still depleted.

"As you wish, master." Berserker said simply, as if the order itself didn't matter to him, only the fact that he followed the command. In the blink of an eye, he was gone, creating a whirlwind with his rapid movement that stirred up the torn remnants of Jiro's clothes. Yet, she didn't fight to cover herself. The damage was done. All she could do now was watch with no small sense of satisfaction as Berserker easily overtook the five rapists.

It lasted a total of five heartbeats.

_Thump._

Berserker caught up with the five men and, with a sickening crunch, ripped the spine out of one of them. Jiro thought he had been one of the ones who was holding her down. His blood sprayed everywhere, covering his friends, and Berserker, and even the walls of the alley, with an odorous red paint.

_Thump._

Berserker flicked his wrist, and the spine he'd just taken from his first "victim" whipped its way around the neck of the next one to fall to the "demon". Berserker grabbed both ends of the makeshift garrote and quickly snapped the neck of the man who had covered Jiro's mouth with his hand.

_Thump._

Berserker's heavy metal boot accidentally crushed the head of the second man, the skull shattering and blood once more spraying everywhere as the gigantic brute turned towards the third of the group. He had been the first one to grab Jiro, the one who had initially pulled her into the alley at knifepoint. Berserker made short work of him, though he died screaming at his head was quite literally ripped from his body.

_Thump._

The other two hadn't even slowed their retreat, nor halted their screams as their friends were systematically disassembled. They had managed to get a few meters down the alleyway by this point, though it was nowhere near enough to save them. Berserker materialized in front of them in a cloud of darkness, and extended a leg clad in black armor, caving in the chest of the one who had been having his way with Jiro when Berserker was summoned. He coughed up blood as his shattered ribs punctured his lungs and heart. Berserker knew he wouldn't last more than a few more minutes, anyway. There was no need to waste any more effort on him. Even if someone did call for medical attention, it would arrive far too late to save him.

_Thump._

Berserker picked the last man up by his shoulders. Jiro realized with a thrill that he had been the one who had stolen her maidenhood and had dared to spill himself inside of her. Mentally, she hoped Berserker would treat him specially. And somehow, Berserker seemed to catch her intent as he glanced towards her, an eyebrow raised in question for a brief moment before he focused on the one who was most likely the ringleader of the group. Berserker held his shoulders tightly, squeezing with the minimal amount of pressure necessary. Tighter. Tighter. The air was forced out of the man's lungs, and he found himself unable to draw in another breath, or even make a sound. Berserker simply held him there, watching as, slowly, the man's face turned red, then purple, then blue as he suffocated. Finally, the man stopped even blinking, and his head rolled to the side as he died. Berserker put just a bit more pressure on him, then, and his torso exploded in a shower of blood, covering the entire front of Berserker's black armor, as well as his face and his long, platinum blonde hair.

Only moments later, Berserker returned to Jiro, his black armor now covered in the blood of the five humans who would never again treat another woman the way they had treated Jiro...


	2. Summoning, pt 2.

_ Tohsaka Manor, Fuyuki City, Japan: February 1, 2024 _

"Absolutely not!" Mayumi's mother said pointedly, a frown stretching across her face in disbelief. Why? Why did her daughter have to be so reckless? She  _ must _ have inherited her father's idiocy! Otherwise, there was simply no way Mayumi could be dumb enough to think-

"Mom!" Mayumi interrupted her train of thought with a sigh. "Please! I can handle it!"

"That's what everyone who does this thinks, Mayumi. The truth is, no matter how prepared you think you are, there's no way you can truly be prepared for the Holy Grail War." Her mother scolded her before turning back to the desk in front of them. "Now, do it again."

Mayumi huffed in annoyance, crossing her arms over her blue sweater as she slouched in her seat. "You and dad both fought in the last one, and you did okay." She muttered under her breath, then sat forward, placing her elbow on the desk and resting her chin in her hand in irritation as she performed the spell again. 

She held her free hand over the jewels on the desk and fired up her magic circuits, her left arm glowing with intricate designs as the magic crest showed itself. As the magecraft worked, the jewels began shaking on the desk, causing a rattling sound to reverberate throughout the room. 

The jewels hovered slightly above the desk and began changing shape, slowly taking the form of a small bird that flapped its wings and chirped, as if it were a real bird.

"Good." Rin Tohsaka said, her hands resting on her hips as she observed the bird for a moment, then turned and sat on the edge of the desk, looking down at her daughter. "Shirou and I went through a lot in the last Grail War, Mayumi. Things that we just don't want you to have to go through."

"But there's always supposed to be a Tohsaka among the seven masters, mom." Mayumi argued stubbornly. "That's how it's always been done.

"Your name is Emiya, though." Rin countered with a teasing smile and a wink, chuckling to herself when Mayumi gave her a deadpan look that reminded her so much of herself at that age. "Anyway, you may be the next heir of the Tohsaka lineage, but you still have a lot to learn. A lot."

"I have more of a magic crest than you did when you fought in the last Holy Grail War!"

"Please, at most you have  _ as much _ of a crest as I did. You may have already received the entirety of your father’s crest, but you still only have about three quarters of my crest. 

“I had the entire Tohsaka magic crest when I fought in the Holy Grail War,” Rin pointed out sternly, though her gaze softened slightly as she sighed, “and I still almost died. Several times, in fact. And so did Shirou. And everyone else. Some people  _ did _ die. 

"It's not worth it, Mayumi.” She added, putting a hand on Mayumi’s shoulder. “Whatever wish you have in mind for the Grail, the cost is just too high."

"I know that, mom." Mayumi said firmly, standing up and standing in front of her mother with her hands at her waist, mirroring Rin's pose from just a minute ago. "That's why I don't  _ want _ to make a wish on the Grail."

Rin looked at her daughter curiously for a long moment, trying in vain to decipher her meaning. If Mayumi didn't have a wish for the Grail, then why, exactly, did she even want to  _ fight _ in the Holy Grail War? That was the entire point of it. Eventually, she gave up on trying to figure it out for herself and just asked, instead. Her daughter was an enigma. Just when Rin thought she had Mayumi figured out, she went and changed.

"Alright, I'll bite. If you don't want to make a wish on the Holy Grail, why  _ do _ you want to participate in the Grail War?" 

\---

_ Einzbern Manor, Fuyuki City, Japan _

Irmasviel von Einzbern swung her legs back and forth as she watched the maids scurry about, preparing for her mother's trip to Germany. Word had come in about the destruction of Einzbern Castle two days ago, and since then, the atmosphere here in the manor had become frantic. 

Her mother, Ilyasviel von Einzbern, seemed to keep herself calm and composed, of course. But, then again, Irma supposed it was her job to do so now. The entirety of the Einzbern family, save the two of them and the maids, had been in the Castle, and had been killed in the towering inferno that had only just finally been put out. 

The flames had devastated the entire forest surrounding the castle for the past three days since the incident occured. Finally, the fire departments of the surrounding areas had managed to quell the last of the flames that morning, and so Ilyasviel was now preparing to make the trip to Germany.

"Why do you have to go?" Irma asked, her voice light and airy. It sounded almost ethereal, as if she herself wasn't really there. "The Holy Grail War will be starting soon. You'll be needed here." 

Irma turned to look at her mother. Looking at the two of them, it was hard to tell who was the mother, and who was the daughter. Both were homunculi, of course, though the circumstances surrounding Ilyasviel's birth had stunted her growth, leaving her perpetually with the body of a young teenager. 

Irmasviel, on the other hand, had no such restrictions. Her body hadn't been modified as heavily as her mother's had been, and so she was able to age at a somewhat normal rate. Thus, she now appeared almost four years older than her own mother.

"I have to. That wasn't any ordinary fire that destroyed our Castle." Ilya said calmly as they both observed the maids continuing to quickly make the preparations. "No simple forest fire would have broken through the wards protecting the Castle. Especially not with our entire family present. 

“No, someone attacked us. Someone powerful. The fact that it happened just before the beginning of the war can't be a coincidence. I have to go and find out who did it, so that we can prepare for the time when you will have to face him. You, however, will remain here. Tonight is the night when you will summon your Heroic Spirit, and your Holy Grail War will begin."

Irma sighed and pulled her knees up to hug them to her chest, nodding silently. "I know..." She said softly after a moment. "I just... I thought you'd be here with me when I do it."

Ilya put a hand on Irma's head and smiled down at her. "Don't worry. You'll be fine. You may not have all my modifications, but you do still have the same magic circuits I do. I was able to summon and maintain a Berserker during the last war with no difficulties. A Caster should prove easy for you."

"Remind me again why we're summoning Caster? Why not a Saber class, like-"

"Because," Ilya interrupted Irma with a huff, shaking a finger in disapproval. "Sabers are predictable. They rely heavily on their innate resistance to magic, and if you can take away their sword, they're basically useless. That's the problem with the three Knight classes. They can't usually fight very well without their weapon of choice."

"We couldn't secure a catalyst for a Saber, could we?" Irma deadpanned, and Ilya's shoulders sank in disappointment.

"Good catalysts are hard to find, you know... At this point, most of the catalysts for powerful Sabers are probably secured by other families, anyway." Ilya sighed, shaking her head. "At any rate, the class doesn't matter as much as the quality. Besides, with your magic circuits and skills as a magus, any Servant of yours will be a force to be reckoned with, regardless of class."

Irma sighed and sat back, relaxing as she turned once more to look at Ilya. "So... what exactly  _ did _ we acquire for a catalyst?"

"It's not so much that we acquired it  _ for _ a catalyst, as much as we happened to have a material that  _ can _ be used as a catalyst." Ilya said vaguely as one of the maids came forward, procuring a small, ornate box, no bigger than a ring box.

"So... basically, we're resorting to just using things we have lying around?" Irma quipped, raising an eyebrow.

"It will suffice. Use this catalyst, summon your Servant, and become a master." Ilya commanded Irma just as her personal servant came up, announcing that they were ready to depart. Ilya nodded to acknowledge her, then looked back at Irma again. "With any luck, my investigation won't take long, and I'll be back soon to help you. Together, we'll win the war for sure." 

Irma nodded. "Right. I doubt many of the other masters will have a Grail War veteran working with them." She said in agreement.

Ilya smiled confidently and squeezed Irmasviel's shoulder as she walked by, heading for the door, and leaving Irma alone in the manor.

\---

_ Fuyuki Central Park, Fuyuki City, Japan _

Kaylin adjusted her long, black coat, drawing it tighter around her frame to ward off the biting cold. Her breath caused white clouds to form in the air in front of her. It wasn't quite cold enough for snow, but definitely too cold for her own comfort. 

She stood in the center of a large, wide open park. Really, it should have been packed with children and parents playing. It was actually really pretty, with plenty of space, and the trees spread out just enough not to obscure anyone's vision, but dense enough to give it a very natural feel. 

If it weren't for the feeling of dread that permeated the air, and the sensation of constantly being watched, Kaylin herself would probably love it.

Sadly, this park had quite a story behind it, apparently. According to a few rumors she'd heard at the airport, the park had been the starting point for a large wildfire that had consumed this city about thirty years prior. Many lives had been lost then, and now, all that spiritual energy converged here. 

The atmosphere alone was the sole explanation for why the park was abandoned. And Kaylin could understand why. If she didn't have need of that spiritual energy right now, she wouldn't be here, either. 

Still, it would suit her purposes for now.

Kaylin set a backpack down on the ground and pulled out a jar of a red oil. She opened the jar and began to slowly drizzle the contents onto the ground, forming a large circle, about five feet in diameter. Inside the circle, she drew several intricate magic symbols to complete the summoning circle, then set the jar aside before standing a couple feet away from the circle. 

She reached up to her neck and removed a pendant given to her by her father, a gift from the family he worked for. The pendant was simple, and made of plain stone, not any precious metal or gemstone, though its historical value was nearly unmatched. It would serve well as a catalyst.

She pulled a match from her pocket and struck it against the stone pendant, then threw it onto the oil, igniting the summoning circle. The flames burned hot and quickly for a moment, scorching the design of the circle into the grass and dirt before dying out as quickly as it started, leaving only a smoldering blemish in the ground. 

Kaylin then looked at her watch and counted down the remaining seconds before her alarm finally beeped at the stroke of midnight. Shutting the beeping off, Kaylin sighed, her breath again fogging up the air in front of her.

"It's time." She muttered under her breath to herself as she held the stone pendant in front of herself.

She closed her eyes and began the incantation, feeling her magic circuits surge as she accessed every bit of her power for the ritual. She would definitely need it.

"For the elements, silver and iron. For the foundation, stone, and the archduke of contracts. My tribute is to the element of fire. Construct a wall to guard against the wind that shall fall..."

\---

_ Einzbern Manor _

"Close the four primary gates, and rotate the three-forked road leading towards the Kingdom." Irma recited from memory as she stood before her own summoning circle, her magic circuits glowing red as they all activated at once. Her mana surged into the circle, causing it to resonate with the same red glow, and red lighting began to spark along the edges of the circle.

Her mother wasn't here to observe the summoning, likely halfway to Germany by now on a plane. Still, Irma knew she could do this. She would show her mother that she was right to put her faith in her, that they would accomplish their goal together. 

Once Ilyasviel returned home, she would find Irma waiting for her with her Servant, ready to fight for the Holy Grail against the other six masters, and they would remind the entire world of mages that the Einzberns were not a family to be trifled with.

"Let it now be declared that your body will serve under me, and my fate will be with your sword. Answer the call of the Holy Grail." She continued confidently, staring down at the odd red gemstone in the center of her circle; the catalyst provided to her by her mother that morning.

\---

_ Tohsaka Manor _

Mayumi stood in the attic of the manor. Sufficient space for the ritual had been cleared away from the center of the floor, where a summoning circle had been painted on the floor in red. The antler of a deer was placed in the center of the circle to use as a catalyst. Mayumi herself had selected the catalyst to be used to summon her Servant. Rin Tohsaka and Shirou Emiya, her parents, both stood to the side, anxiously watching as their daughter made the final step necessary to take part in a bloody ritual that could very well cost her her life.

"If you would answer the call, then submit to my will, and my truth!" Mayumi called, papers flying around the room as the spell stirred up a whirlwind. Mayumi's gray skirt fluttered wildly, though she ignored it as she closed her eyes, focusing solely on the ritual. "I swear that I will attain all of the virtues of Heaven; I will have dominion over all of the evils of Hell..."

\---

Unwittingly, the three masters across the city from each other spoke simultaneously as they each worked to summon their Heroic spirits, completing the incantation almost perfectly at the same time;

"From the Seventh Heaven, attended to by three great words of power, come forth from the ring of restraint, guardian of the scales!"

And at once, at three separate points in the city, the leylines exploded with energy, mana bursting outwards in a wave that knocked out the power for a majority of the city. Fuyuki City was bathed in darkness for several long minutes as people wondered what had happened. What could have caused a near city-wide blackout like this? 

The mages of the city, however, knew that it was time. The die had been cast, and it was once again time for swords to clash. It was time for a battle to be waged once more for the power of the Holy Grail.

\---

_ Fuyuki Central Park _

The lights in the park finally came back on as power was restored to the city, and Kaylin glanced around in confusion for a moment. Surely one summoning ritual wasn't powerful enough to accomplish such a large-scale blackout? No, it had to be something more. Kaylin herself wasn't nearly powerful enough to cause that, even for such a short duration. 

No, it was certainly more. It couldn't have been a coincidence. She was willing to bet that at least one of the other masters had just succeeded as well in summoning their Servant. It was time, after all, and it wouldn't be much longer before the war officially began.

Her father's employers had already heard word that three of the seven Servants had been summoned prior to this point, within the past week. Their identities, of course, were not included in the rumors, but the summoning of a Heroic Spirit always left some kind of trace. It wasn't hard to believe that the Mage's Association had detected three prior summons. They  _ definitely _ would have detected this incident here. 

If her hypothesis was correct, and it usually was, then there was at least one other Servant summoned just now. She had felt far more energy in that surge of power just now than was normal for a single summon, especially one performed by such an  _ average _ magus as herself. 

That meant that, unless the others had been summoned, yet the Archibald family had simply not yet heard word of them, that there were only one or two Servants left to be summoned. The day was fast approaching.

_ 'And now... I'm ready.' _ She thought to herself as she took in the sight of her Servant. He was dressed in a simple suit of silver armor, with leg guards covering his shins and knees over his black breeches, and his gray undershirt showing only around his biceps and throat beneath the chest plates pauldrons and gauntlets. 

A longsword was sheathed in its scabbard at his left hip, and he kept his long, silky red hair tied back with a leather thong. He seemed somewhat plain for a knight, but Kaylin knew that he had to be an exceptional Servant. After all, the catalyst provided by the Archibald family through her father could not have summoned any lackluster Servant.

"I ask you now;" Saber began, his pale, silver eyes meeting Kaylin's dark gray. "Are you my master?"

Kaylin stood confidently before him, despite the weakness she now felt due to the ritual. As she spoke, she tried to put as much of that confidence into her voice as she could, in order to assert her dominance as the master. "Yes. My name is Kaylin Oceania Velvet, and I am your master." 

Saber nodded and knelt at her feet as if she were a queen, and bowed his head in respect. "I am the Saber-class heroic spirit, Sir Tristan of Camelot, Knight of the Round Table. I will be your sword, and your shield. I am your tool, your weapon, your Servant."

\---

_ Fuyuki Central Park, Fuyuki City, Japan; February 5, 2024 _

_...4 days later... _

Mayumi Emiya kneeled down on one knee as she examined the scorch marks in the grass and dirt. They were old, of course, barely even noticeable now, and it had taken her a while to find the exact spot in the park she was seeking. Still, once she found it, she knew she'd found what she was looking for. 

There was no doubt about it. This was the third source of the blackout that happened four days ago. It had taken a couple days of careful investigation to figure out where the other two surges of energy she had sensed that day had come from, but now she knew for certain. One of them had come from the old Einzbern Manor.

_ 'Because of course it did...' _ Mayumi thought to herself, shaking her head. The Einzberns were, until their castle in Germany was destroyed a little more than a week ago, one of the oldest mage families, and one of the three families, along with Mayumi's mother's family, who were responsible for  _ creating _ the Holy Grail War system. 

Of course they wouldn't allow a Grail War to take place without throwing a master of their own into the mix. Mayumi was hardly surprised by this turn of events. The only question was  _ who _ of the Einzberns would be the master. Either way, that wasn't strictly pressing at this moment. Knowing that an Einzbern was one of the other six masters took a little bit of guesswork out of the equation. It was  _ something _ , at least.

No, Mayumi was more concerned with the third source of the blackout. Judging by the summoning circle burned into the ground, this location was definitely used by one of the masters to summon their Servant. 

Unfortunately, there was no way to tell  _ who _ that master was. It wasn't the Matous. They had their own property on which they could have summoned a Servant. They wouldn't have needed to come here to do it. And there weren't any other prominent mage families here in Fuyuki. That meant it had to be an outsider.

She sighed as she stood up, brushing the dirt and grass off her knee and socks.  _ 'Well  _ that _ narrows it down...'  _ She thought sarcastically, crossing her arms.

_ "Is something the matter, shogun?" _ Mayumi's Servant asked as he maintained his spirit form, invisibly watching over her from a distance.

Mayumi looked around quickly, slightly startled by his voice. She hadn't quite broken that habit yet, despite having been an official master for over half a week.

Once she realized who had spoken, she relaxed and spoke to Lancer directly through their mental link.  _ "Not exactly. It's just frustrating, not having any clue who the other masters are, let alone their Servants." _

Lancer's chuckle in her head caused her eyebrow to twitch in irritation.  _ "What the heck is so funny?" _

_ "Welcome to wartime, shogun. A warrior does not always know who his enemy is, only that he must defeat him." _ Lancer retorted in the typically philosophical tone that had been commonplace with him since his summoning. Mayumi was beginning to think the wrong Servant had answered her summon. The last she'd checked, she'd been attempting to summon a famous samurai, not some philosopher.

Still... She couldn't argue with his words.

_ "Yeah... I know. I just hate waiting around. I mean, it's been four days, and the seventh heroic spirit STILL hasn't been summoned. What's the last master doing, waiting for a mail-order Servant?" _

Mayumi sighed and returned to her bike, sitting sideways on the seat for a moment as she thought.  _ "Anyways, while we wait for the last Servant to be summoned, I can at least do a bit of digging and try to gain some information on who the other masters might be. Figuring that out  _ might _ even help me figure out what kind of heroic spirit they might have summoned." _

_ "How so?"  _ Lancer asked curiously

_ "It's hard to say, really. If it's someone I've heard of, then maybe I can figure out what kinds of heroic spirits might be compatible with them. Or if they're from noteworthy mage families, maybe I can check and see if their families own any artifacts that could be used as a catalyst." _

_ "Oh, really? Well, then, what about this "Einzbern" master you mentioned yesterday?" _

Mayumi thought about it for a while before answering.  _ "I'm not really sure. I mean, sure, I know who the Einzberns are, and my parents are friends with an Einzbern, but I haven't really had much contact with them myself. The only one I've even met is Ilyasviel von Einzbern, and that was only once, when I was a little girl. And besides that, almost all of the Einzberns were killed about a week ago when their castle was attacked." _

Lancer hummed in acknowledgement, remembering his master and her parents talking about that the other day.  _ "Right... I remember you saying something about that. You said that it would have taken a really powerful magus to even scratch the wards surrounding that castle, right?" _

_ "Right." _ Mayumi agreed, wondering where Lancer was going with this.

_ "Well, what if it wasn't actually a  _ magus _ who did it?" _

Mayumi's eyes widened in realization then as she caught onto exactly what Lancer was suggesting.  _ "Wait a second... you don't mean it was a  _ Servant _ who attacked the Einzbern Castle?" _

_ "It fits, doesn't it? Judging by the timeline, it had to have been the first Servant summoned for the war." _

Mayumi pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head. "That's not good." She said aloud, her words directed more to herself than Lancer now. 

_ "Shogun, forgive me, but perhaps it would be best if you keep your thoughts  _ in _ your head for now? I don't think you want to risk any of the other masters who might be in the area seeing you talking to yourself." _

_ "You're right. Of course." _

_ "Of course I'm right."  _ Lancer's smug grin popped into Mayumi's memory, and she had the strong urge to punch him. Not that it would actually hurt him, of course, but it might make her feel a bit better.  _ "Anyway, why do you say that's not good?" _

_ "Because even a Servant would have had to be pretty powerful in order to completely break through the Einzbern defenses like that. Which means we know there is at least one extremely strong enemy we'll have to defeat if we want to win the Grail War." _

_ "Even the mightiest of dragons have a soft belly, shogun." _

Mayumi groaned and turned in the seat of her bike, standing upright and putting one foot on the pedals.  _ "What does that even mean?" _

_ "It means that even the strongest of enemies will have some kind of weakness to exploit. All we will have to do is find it." _

_ "I hope you're right, Lancer..." _ She thought, then kicked off the ground and put her other foot on the pedals of the bike as she began to ride back down the trail to leave the park.

She barely got ten feet, however, when she found herself flying through the air, unable to breathe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's chapter 2 for you guys. Hope you enjoyed it! Kind of a slow chapter, of course, but I really just wanted to introduce a few of the characters and get the obligatory "summoning montage" scene in. Next chapter will be starting with some of the action leading into the grail war.
> 
> Also, I'm very interested to see if anyone will be able to guess the identities of the heroic spirits before I reveal them, so be sure to comment down below with any guesses you might have. Obviously, there's not much to go on so far, but give it a shot, anyway! 
> 
> I'll see you back here with chapter 3!


	3. Confrontation

_Fuyuki Central Park, Fuyuki City, Japan; February 5, 2024_

_"You said that it would have taken a really powerful magus to even scratch the wards surrounding that castle, right?"_

_"Right."_ Mayumi agreed, wondering where Lancer was going with this.

 _"Well, what if it wasn't actually a_ magus _who did it?"_

Mayumi's eyes widened in realization then as she caught onto exactly what Lancer was suggesting. _"Wait a second... you don't mean it was a_ Servant _who attacked the Einzbern Castle?"_

_"It fits, doesn't it? Judging by the timeline, it had to have been the first Servant summoned for the war."_

Mayumi pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head. "That's not good." She said aloud, her words directed more to herself than Lancer now.

 _"Shogun, forgive me, but perhaps it would be best if you keep your thoughts_ in _your head for now? I don't think you want to risk any of the other masters who might be watching seeing you talking to yourself."_

_"You're right. Of course."_

_"Of course I'm right."_ Lancer's smug grin popped into Mayumi's memory, and she had the strong urge to punch him. Not that it would actually hurt him, of course, but it might make her feel a bit better. _"Anyway, why do you say that's not good?"_

_"Because even a Servant would have had to be pretty powerful in order to completely break through the Einzbern defenses like that. Which means we know there is at least one extremely strong enemy we'll have to defeat if we want to win the Grail War."_

_"Even the mightiest of dragons have a soft belly, shogun."_

Mayumi groaned and turned in the seat of her bike, standing upright and putting one foot on the pedals. _"What does that even mean?"_

_"It means that even the strongest of enemies will have some kind of weakness to exploit. All we will have to do is find it."_

_"I hope you're right, Lancer..."_ She thought, then kicked off the ground and put her other foot on the pedals of the bike as she began to ride back down the trail to leave the park.

She barely got ten feet, however, when she found herself flying through the air, unable to breathe.

 _"Shogun!"_ She vaguely heard Lancer's voice say just before she hit the ground. _Hard._

Mayumi could barely even think to herself, let alone reply to Lancer in that moment. Her entire body was seized up in pain, and she was in shock, simply trying to remember how to breathe. She couldn't even tell if her eyes were open or shut, her vision completely shrouded in darkness. The only things she was conscious of were the incessant ringing in her ears, and the sound of her own pounding heartbeat reverberating in her skull.

Finally, after several long moments, she found herself able to take in several short, shallow breaths. The oxygen rushed to distribute once more throughout her bloodstream, slowly returning some semblance of clarity to her as she began clawing at the grass and dirt below her, desperately searching for something to ground herself. After what seemed like an eternity, she managed to wrap her hand around something firm and cold. Something metallic. It was the frame of her bike, she realized, though it was bent awkwardly now. She was sure that when her vision finally returned, she would find her bike totally destroyed by whatever it was that had sent her flying.

Still, gripping the cold metal helped her to drag herself back to full consciousness. Her vision slowly returned to her, beginning with a light that blinded her. Though, the light wasn't from her surroundings, it came from behind her eyes, and she knew she'd definitely have a concussion. Eventually, the light died down, and she was able to see blurry shapes moving in front of her. The ringing in her ears and the pounding of her heart in her skull faded next, and she could vaguely hear a metallic clanging, like the sound of swords clashing, but faster. Much faster. The blurry shapes were illuminated by a kind of strobe light as Mayumi squinted her eyes to try and make out what was happening.

 _'What... what_ is _happening?'_ She wondered weakly to herself.

 _"-gun!"_ She heard in her head, and looked around in confusion. Her blurry surroundings' movement in her vision gave her a feeling of motion sickness, and she had to resist the urge to throw up.

Mayumi planted her fists into the ground, gasping for more air as she realized she had momentarily forgotten to keep breathing.

 _'Breathing is important...'_ She reminded herself, and closed her eyes once more as she focused on breathing. She'd get nowhere if she couldn't continuously take in oxygen without having to think about it.

Once she was sure she had the hang of breathing again, she opened her eyes, her vision slightly clearer than before. The rapid clanging of metal on metal continued on, though with an occasional pause that seemed to coincide with a slight pause in the strobe lights as well.

 _'Not strobe lights...'_ She realized. _'Sparks... But... from what?'_

She closed her eyes once more and began counting to ten.

_'One... two... three...'_

Meanwhile, she heard the voice again.

_"-un! Ta-... -oo me!"_

_'Four... five... six...'_

_"-ammit! Snap ou- vit!"_

_'Seven... eight-!'_

She didn't even make it to ten before her eyes shot open, and she realized she could see clearly again, everything rushing back to her at once. "Lancer!" She gasped aloud, jerking her head over to see her Servant engaged in combat with another.

"Shogun! Are you alright?" She heard Lancer's voice out loud this time, rather than in her head. He was standing still now, staring down the enemy Servant as they circled each other, their eyes never breaking contact, even to blink. In a battle between Servants, one blink would mean the end.

"Do you really have time to be worrying about your master, Lancer?" The enemy Servant asked with a smirk, and Mayumi realized that it was a woman's voice.

It shouldn't have surprised her, of course. Plenty of women had made their marks on history through the ages, so naturally there would be many female heroic spirits. Odds were that at least one or two of her enemies would be female. Still, it caught Mayumi off guard enough that she had to take a moment to examine her.

Her height was the first thing Mayumi noticed. She was tall, for a woman. In fact, she was actually taller than Lancer. After a quick visual measurement, Mayumi estimated her to be a little more than six feet tall. Mayumi's second observation was that she was very well-built. She wasn't bulky by any means, but she was chiseled like a marble statue, the edge of every single muscle well-defined. Her eyes were the color of blood, and her long, flowing hair was the color of sun-bleached bone. She barely wore any clothes at all, really. She had bandages wrapped around her breasts, and her nether regions were concealed by a piece of white clothing that could only be compared to bikini bottoms. She wore leather sandals, and shin guards that seemed to be actually _made_ of bone, and her arms were protected from wrist to elbow by matching bone gauntlets. around her waist, she wore a leather belt that somewhat resembled a wrestling heavyweight champion's belt, with a large gold plate on the front, and smaller plates along the sides. The central plate had a word stamped into it in what appeared to be Greek letters. Her lightly tanned skin was marked with several tribal-style tattoos in red ink that she seemed to wear proudly, concealing not a single inch from view, nor did she hide the fact that the only place she seemed to be lacking was in the chest. Mayumi didn't consider herself "large" in the breast department, but even she had more going on than the woman currently squaring off against Lancer. Still, she was certainly a remarkable woman, and clearly built to be a warrior.

She stood in sharp contrast to Lancer, who had only his head and palms exposed. Every inch of his body was covered, though his clothing was certainly not bulky, either. His attire consisted primarily of a dark gray bodysuit. His shins and forearms were protected by black samurai-styled armor plates with gold around the edges, black _geta_ on his feet, and armor plating on his shoulders that matched his gauntlets and shin guards. His black hair was tied back and pulled up into a folded ponytail, to keep it from getting in his face. His black eyes never left the other Servant's red as they circled, resembling tigers stalking each other, each waiting for the other to show even the slightest moment of weakness.

Lancer's grip on his spear tightened as he narrowed his eyes and smirked. "At least my shogun isn't hiding in the shadows like a coward." He retorted to the enemy Servant's verbal jab. "Where exactly is _your_ master, eh, Rider?"

 _'So she's the_ Rider _class heroic spirit, huh?'_ Mayumi thought to herself as she slowly pushed herself to her feet and winced as she brushed the dirt off her skirt and legs. Something felt... _off_ about her left shoulder, and she vaguely recalled that being the side she had initially landed on. She rolled it once to inspect the damage, and gasped as her entire left side was consumed in pain. Yep, her shoulder had definitely been dislocated. She felt tears spring to her eyes as her right hand shot up to clutch at her shoulder. A big mistake, of course, as the action sent more pain coursing through her left side. Still, she kept her grip and forced herself to breathe through it.

 _'Alright, Emiya... focus... You can do this... It's just a little pain, you'll be alright... Don't be a baby, dammit!'_ She internally screamed at herself, then whimpered as she activated her magic circuits, her mana flowing through her right hand into her left shoulder. "Trace... on!" She muttered under her breath, closing her eyes. She visualized the circuits in her shoulder covering the bones, then pulled the joint back together, forcing the joint to realign and pop back into place with a sickening _crack_. She cried out in agony and sank back to her knees with a whimper, then forced herself to quiet back down again. Still, her breathing had devolved into a mess of whimpers, her eyes clenched shut as she struggled to work through the pain.

Rider and Lancer both observed her curiously, watching as she managed to push herself to her feet once more, breathing heavily.

"I'll give you this much, Lancer; your master is a tough one. She'd have made a fine warrior back in my day." Rider said, her voice carrying a tone of amusement.

Lancer hummed and nodded in agreement. "I would say the same for your master, but... well..." He said sharply with a somewhat cocky smirk.

Rider grimaced and gripped the hilts of her short swords tighter. "Are you just going to keep making that same comment about my coward of a master, or are you ever actually going to attack?"

"Funny, here I was, waiting for you to attack. Seeing as you attacked my shogun, I figured you would appreciate being allowed to take the initiative." Lancer countered. "What's that saying the kids use today? "Ladies first"?"

Rider didn't waste another second, launching herself at Lancer with a growl. Her body seemed to vanish for a split second due to her speed, and Mayumi realized that her lack of clothing wasn't merely a fashion statement. Servants were naturally supposed to be fast, of course, as well as strong, but Rider's speed was something else entirely. Not only was her body _built_ for it, her choice in attire seemed to enhance her speed even further with its unrestrictive simplicity. The lack of heavy, bulky armor and clothing meant she could move freely and quickly, even beyond what other Servants were likely able to achieve.

She seemed almost to dance around Lancer. First, she attacked from the front, bringing her blades around together in an arc from the right. In the next instant, she was behind him, swiping up with one blade while her other blade swung downwards. The next instant, she appeared above Lancer, attacking from the air. Every heartbeat, she came from a different direction, as if there were several of her, all attacking from different angles to keep Lancer off balance.

To his credit, Lancer managed to deflect every attack fairly well, making it look almost easy. Still, he was utterly unable to go on the offensive, as it was all he could do just to keep up with Rider's speed. He didn't bother taking the time to turn and face her, he simply moved his spear around his body to where he could sense her coming from, acting on pure instinct. Those that he was unable to block in time, he narrowly avoided by angling his body just enough that Rider's blade would miss him by a hair's breadth. He somehow managed to keep his balance, despite Rider's furious assault, though Mayumi could tell from his silence that it was taking every ounce of his concentration to do so. If she even tried to speak to him with their mental connection, she would cost him the fight for sure.

Meanwhile, Rider seemed to have no such restriction. She threw taunts at Lancer as she attacked, laughing about how he simply couldn't keep up with her, telling him to just surrender, promising she'd make his death quick, and that she'd leave Mayumi alone once he was gone. Lancer didn't take the bait, of course, but that was the only reason he was managing to hold her off.

 _'How...?'_ Mayumi thought to herself, making sure to not break Lancer's concentration. _'How is there such a gap between them? A heroic spirit like Lancer should be untouchable... Yet it's all he can do to just survive this! What... What_ is _she?'_ A thought occurred to her that Rider could have been the one to destroy the Einzbern Castle, but she dismissed the idea quickly. No, whoever had done that had incinerated the castle in minutes. Rider had shown no signs of having any power over flames, and she had taken the time to physically confront Lancer and Mayumi, rather than simply destroying them from a distance, as was likely the case for the Servant who had attacked the Einzbern Castle. The Castle had likely been destroyed by either the Archer or Caster Servant.

 _'Then that means there are_ two _extremely powerful Servants in this war... Lancer is beginning to look more and more like the underdog...'_ Mayumi thought in frustration. _'Still... maybe... if I can catch her off guard...'_

Mayumi slowly raised her right arm, gripping her bicep with her left hand as she drew power from her magic crest, and started tracking Rider's movements with her eyes. She looked for some kind of pattern in where she attacked from, any repetition that could be used to decipher where she would come from next.

 _'There!'_ Mayumi realized with a start after a minute, and aimed for the space on Lancer's left. Lancer was right-handed, and so he generally positioned his left hand towards the blade to guide his spear while the right hand was positioned towards the opposite end of the spear to provide the power. That meant his spear was typically positioned on his right side, which left his left side slightly more vulnerable to attack. Rider, of course, was taking advantage of this, and attacking more consistently from his left side to try and slip under his guard.

Mayumi quickly gathered her mana in her right hand, a small pearl of black energy charging up at her fingertips as she waited for her opportunity to strike. Before she could, however, Rider was suddenly in front of her, her blades at either side of Mayumi's wrist, threatening to sever her hand completely. Rider's face was inches from Mayumi's, red eyes boring deep into Mayumi's blue. It was clearly an intimidation tactic.

And it worked.

Mayumi completely froze up, her eyes wide as her knees grew weak as she realized the futility of what she had been about to attempt. She knew that she could still follow through with it. Her attack spell was ready, and Rider's chest was exposed, barely an inch away from Mayumi's fingertips. All she had to do was release the _Finn_ shot, and she would blast Rider with the culmination of eight generations of Tohsaka curse magic, directly from the 75% of the magic crest she had received from her mother over the years. Yet even now, she could feel the sting of the edges of Rider's blades slipping across her skin. With the Servant's speed, there was no doubt that she could sever Mayumi's hand before she even _thought_ about releasing her attack. In fact, there was nothing stopping her from doing it now, regardless of whether Mayumi continued her attack.

So why-?

"It would be very stupid of you to try and interfere in our fight, girl. You're tough. I respect that. But in a battle between heroic spirits, a mere human like you doesn't stand a chance. Put your hand down now, or lose it." Rider said calmly.

Mayumi felt her words catch in her throat, leaving her unable to form a verbal response. So, in the end, all she could do was nod. Rider moved her blades slightly, ensuring Mayumi wouldn't accidentally cut her own hand off when she pulled back, and allowed the girl to drop her hands helplessly to the side. The Servant then gave Mayumi a cheeky smile and patted her on the head. "Good girl! Now, just sit here and wait while the grownups finish their fun!" She said with a mocking tone, then turned back towards Lancer.

Mayumi looked at her Servant helplessly to see that Rider had, in the heartbeat before assaulting Mayumi herself, somehow gotten inside Lancer's guard just enough to knock him away and leave him stunned momentarily so he couldn't rush to Mayumi's aid.

 _'How did she...?'_ The answer came to her before she even finished forming the question, and she clenched her fists tightly, her shoulders shaking in both fear and anger. _'Because she's just toying with him... She could end Lancer at any moment, but chooses not to...'_

Lancer seemed to come to the same realization, because he growled in frustration as he got to his feet.

Rider simply smirked and pointed one of her swords at Lancer. "Shall we pick up where we left off? Tell you what: I'll give you a handicap." She said, then raised both of her hands, her twin swords disappearing in a shower of red lights. They were then replaced immediately by a short spear with an eight inch blade. "As a Lancer, the spear is supposed to be where you dominate, right? A Rider like me could never match a Lancer's skill with a spear. So, then! This should make for an interesting fight!"

Something about Rider's confidence, despite the handicap she had just given herself, put Mayumi off. Red flags were being raised in Mayumi's mind, though she couldn't see any logical reason why.

 _"Why would she do that? Why would she put herself at such an obvious disadvantage?"_ She asked Lancer mentally, staring cautiously at Rider.

_"I am wondering the same thing, shogun. It does not make sense. Unpredictable opponents are dangerous, though. That much, I can tell you for sure. If you cannot predict an opponent's movements, then you must make yourself even more unpredictable. If you cannot do that, then I have found it is usually better to retreat and live to fight another day."_

Mayumi sighed, clenching her fists as her eyes slipped closed for a second. When she opened them, she shook her head at her Servant. _"Running away isn't an option. Running won't win us the Holy Grail War. Besides, you saw her speed. Even if we tried, we definitely wouldn't get very far."_

Lancer nodded in agreement, glad that his master wasn't some cowardly fool. Still, if Rider's confidence wasn't a bluff, then their chances of actually winning this fight were looking grim.

 _"Then forward, we march!"_ Lancer declared mentally before charging towards the enemy.

Rider looked at Lancer for a moment, as if contemplating something. Somehow, Mayumi knew what Rider must be thinking in that moment. It was almost obvious, what she must be considering.

Are they smart enough to realize that running isn't an option? Or are they simply overestimating the apparent advantage that Rider had given them? Perhaps they think that because she was trying to combat Lancer with a spear that they had the fight in the bag? Or was this merely a desperate last-ditch effort to survive this first battle?

Either way, she wasn't going to let this opportunity for a good fight escape.

Rider stood still as she watched Lancer come closer and closer.

Mayumi watched Lancer's charge as if it were happening in slow motion, though it happened in the space between heartbeats. For a split second, as she saw Rider making no move to block the attack, she allowed herself... No, she _dared_ to hope that maybe, just maybe they had called her bluff. After all, how many Servants could simply switch their fighting style on a whim? There couldn't be many. Sure, there were heroic spirits who were famous for wielding different weapons, such as the legendary King Arthur using both the holy sword Excalibur and the holy lance Rhongomyniad at different points, but as a Servant, those spirits usually only had access to a certain weapon and fighting style at a time, depending on their class.

 _'But does that necessarily mean that, if they were given access to the other weapon, that they would not be able to use it with the same level of proficiency?'_ Mayumi wondered. She had to confess that she didn't know. She hadn't heard of any heroic spirit gaining access to another of their preferred weapons outside of their class container, so she didn't know how the class they were summoned into impacted their skills with other weapons.

 _'It would be best,'_ she decided, _'not to underestimate her... For all we know, she could be just as skilled with a spear as Lancer, even without his class advantage.'_

Mayumi watched with baited breath as Lancer finally moved within striking distance, thrusting his spear forwards, towards Rider's heart with purpose. The speed and power with which he attacked stirred up a slight whirlwind that tossed Mayumi's hair, even at the distance she maintained from the Servants. She saw Rider finally move, her spear coming up to knock Lancer's strike aside... and Mayumi felt, rather than saw, Lancer smirk.

 _'It's a feint!'_ She realized with a start. Of course it was. Lancer wasn't an idiot, after all. Rider wouldn't have challenged him to a contest of spears if she didn't possess at least _some_ skill with the weapon. An obvious frontal attack like that would never get through her guard. It was intentionally telegraphed!

Just as Rider's spear would have knocked Lancer's aside, the trajectory of the attack changed slightly, causing the blade of Rider's weapon to glance off of the flat of his own blade with a spark, nullifying the block entirely.

 _'He's got her!'_ Mayumi thought to herself, a confident smirk playing across her face. _'I-I mean... of course he got her. It was only a matter of time. The moment she chose to take him on with his preferred weapon of choice, the outcome was decided.'_

She was brought out of her internal celebration, then, by a cry of pain. A _masculine_ cry of pain. Mayumi's eyes widened as she saw Lancer stagger back, clutching his right shoulder. There was blood on the tip of Rider's spear. Rider herself was unharmed.

 _"Lancer! What happened? How did she hit you?"_ Mayumi had been watching the entire time, but she couldn't make out what had happened. It had been so fast, she hadn't seen a thing.

Then, as Lancer thought about that moment, Mayumi saw the counter through Lancer's memory. His mind, which operated at the speed of a Servant, had been able to process everything much faster than Mayumi's could. At the last possible moment, Rider had turned her wrist after her failed block, swinging the spear around just enough that the butt of her weapon had formed the block, instead, batting Lancer's spear aside and leaving him open for a counter attack.

And with Rider's innate speed, the counter had been far too easy.

As Lancer pulled his hand back from the fresh wound, Mayumi saw a shallow gash across his right bicep, blood slowly leaking out of the cut.

"Hmm..." Rider said curiously, examining the wound herself. "You must be incredibly lucky. That should have been a fatal strike to your heart, not just some shallow cut to your arm." She said, then swung her spear around to fling the blood off of the blade.

 _"Shogun... to be able to counter my feint so effectively... Her skill with the spear is every bit as proficient as my own."_ Lancer said with a glare towards the enemy. _"This will be a very difficult fight..."_

Mayumi cursed under her breath and clenched her fists in frustration. _"I know... But there's nothing we can do about it. We have to win this, or our Holy Grail War will end before it even begins."_

Lancer kept his eyes trained on Rider as he nodded in agreement. There was nothing more to be said. He would fight, and he would win. For his master, his shogun.

"Come on already. Use your Noble Phantasm!" Rider said, her tone conveying her boredom. Clearly, they weren't entertaining her enough.

 _'So that's what she's after, then!'_ Mayumi thought to herself with a frown. _'She wants to see Lancer's Noble Phantasm!'_

Her eyes met Lancer's, then, and a thought passed between them. It was true that Lancer's Noble Phantasm did seem to be the only path forward, the only way he could defeat Rider...

But that would be playing right into Rider's hand. Clearly, she _wanted_ Lancer to use his Noble Phantasm. Using his trump card like that so early on in the war would reveal his True Name, and put him at a severe disadvantage against any other masters and Servants who managed to learn his identity. He couldn't risk it. Not this early on.

Rider could see that Lancer and Mayumi had no intention of relying on his Noble Phantasm, and she scowled in irritation as she sighed and pointed her spear towards him menacingly. "Fine, then. I guess I'll just have to kill you now, before you become a problem later on." She said under her breath as she charged towards Lancer, her speed causing her to vanish from Mayumi's sight entirely.

Lancer reacted instantly, vanishing from view as well. Mayumi could hear the clanging of metal on metal once more, and sparks flew from the point of impact as the two invisible fighters clashed again and again with relentless speed and power. She couldn't tell which of them was winning, whether Lancer was successfully fending Rider off, or if Rider was continuing to hold the upper hand.

But with Rider focusing on killing Lancer, surely Mayumi could do _something_ now?

Mayumi reached into her bag and pulled out a small, red gemstone, tossing it into the air before quickly firing a _finn_ shot at the jewel. The stone exploded in red sparks, and a translucent red barrier sprang into existence over Mayumi, protecting her. It wouldn't hold for long against a Servant's attack, but it would hopefully buy her enough time to do what she needed to do.

"Alright, here goes nothing..." She muttered under her breath, focusing her mana. "Trace... on!"

Mayumi's father was technically a first generation mage who had learned some basic magecraft from a very skilled mage hunter. However, having been taught only the very basics, the only thing he was really skilled at was the projection of weaponry from his own internal world. As such, it was really the only skill he'd been able to pass on to Mayumi herself. However, because Mayumi didn't possess the internal world owned by her father, her projection magecraft worked a bit differently...

"Judging the concept of creation... Creation conceptualized." Mayumi said as her eyes slipped closed, kick-starting her magic circuits as she began to imagine the object she wished to create.

As Mayumi began working her incantation, both Lancer and Rider turned towards her to watch for a moment.

"Shogun... What are you-...?" Lancer trailed off, confused by his own master's actions.

Rider recovered from her confusion quickly, however. She grimaced, her face quickly turning to a scowl in anger. "I thought I told her to stay the hell out of this!" She growled, then began to charge towards the master, her spear gleaming with red energy.

"No you don't!" Lancer said sharply as he, too, recovered from his confusion, and rushed to defend his master.

"Theorizing the basic structure..." Mayumi continued, trusting in her barrier and her Servant to keep Rider off of her long enough to finish. "Basic structure theorized."

Rider leapt into the air, roaring as she spun in midair and slashed downwards with her red spear, the speed of the movement leaving behind a red blur as the weapon arced downwards. Just before the spear could make contact with the barrier, however, Lancer managed to place himself between Rider and his master, barely managing to get his spear up in time to block the attack.

"Formulating the composition materials... Composition materials formulated. Virtualizing the skill of forging... Skill virtualized." Mayumi continued uninterrupted, showing no signs of having even noticed Lancer's and Rider's proximity.

"Tch... Meddlesome brat!" Rider growled, glaring past Lancer towards his master as she used the momentum from Lancer's block to spring-board herself back up into the air, twisting as she ascended, then landed twenty feet back again, crouching as she prepared to attack again. "Lancer! If your master insists on getting involved in this fight, then I'll have no choice but to take her life! I suggest that you convince her to stand down now if you don't want her to die alongside you!"

Lancer didn't glance back towards his master, keeping his focus on Rider as he considered heeding her advice. In the end, however, he simply sighed and shook his head. The movement was almost imperceptible, but if Rider's sneer was anything to judge by, his decision had been made clear. His master was trusting him to protect her from Rider. What kind of Servant... no, what kind of _samurai_ would he be if he did not put his faith in his shogun just as she was putting her faith in him?

"Engineering experience and growth... Experience engineered." Mayumi extended her right hand outwards, palm facing the ground, and green lightning began crackling along her fingertips, firing out about a foot away from her hand and gathering into a single point before extending to either side of her in a straight line. The energy whipped up a fierce wind within the red barrier from her gems, tossing her hair and clothes, but she maintained focus. She couldn't afford to slip up. Not now. "Hypothesizing accumulated years... Years accumulated."

Rider lunged forwards faster than even Lancer could see, and it was by instinct alone that he was able to narrowly avoid her attack. He realized his mistake too late. Rider sailed past him, the tip of her spear stabbing into the red energy barrier, cracking it. Somehow, it managed to hold up, though the cracks were quickly beginning to spread as Rider continued pouring her strength into the attack.

Lancer quickly spun and managed to kick Rider out of the way, sending her flying back about fifty feet before she skidded to a stop, her feet digging shallow trenches into the ground. Her spear, which was still lodged in the barrier, disappeared in a shower of red sparks, and she held out her hands, her swords once again materializing out of thin air. Without hesitating, she rushed forwards again, slashing out with both blades from the left as Lancer moved once again to block the attack. There was no time for him to go on the offensive against such a fast and strong adversary, but he could keep up the defensive game as long as he had to. Still, even he had his limits, and he knew it was only a matter of time before Rider was able to wear him down enough to slip past him again.

"Shogun! Whatever you're doing, if you could please hurry!" He shouted over the roaring of the wind, which was now spilling out of the crack in the barrier left by Rider's attack.

Mayumi opened her eyes then, her pupils glowing a bright green. The beam of energy forming from the green lightning met her palm, and she grabbed it as if it were a physical thing. In her hand, the energy curved slightly. "Reinforcing structural foundation..." A split second later, the green lightning disappeared, leaving behind a smooth, black bow with a cup-guard surrounding the hand that held it. The bow was covered in subtle, thin, green hexagons that radiated with the same energy that had surrounded the shape. "Foundation reinforced." She said calmly as the wind died down.

Mayumi reached up and pulled the string of the bow back to her ear, and similar green lightning extended from where she was gripping the string through a hole in the cup-guard just above her hand. The lightning dissipated from one end to the other, leaving behind a sleek, black arrow.

It was at that exact moment that Rider was able to slip around Lancer, feinting an attack and spinning herself around him like a top to throw him off balance and get around his guard. She wasted no time and lashed out immediately with her swords. Her attack smashed through Mayumi's damaged barrier, the red energy shattering like glass before vanishing completely.

The mage just smirked as the broken barrier disappeared from between Rider and Mayumi's line of fire. "Projection complete. Now... eat this! Finn Arrow!" Mayumi shouted, releasing the arrow. The arrow rocketed forwards towards Rider at nearly point-blank range. Even Rider's speed wasn't enough to avoid the attack. She only just barely managed to bring her twin blades up in an "X" in front of herself as the arrow slammed into them, pushing her back with tremendous force.

Rider's feet dug into the ground, creating more trenches, and she grit her teeth against the strain. When she finally came to a stop, the blades of her swords were pinned together by the arrow, which had managed to pierce through both of them, and the arrow itself was smoking. The black tip of the projectile was less than an inch away from Rider's heart.

Each of the three combatants simply stood and stared at each other for a minute. The two Servants were completely taken aback by the power of the attack mustered by the mere human mage before them, and Mayumi herself was breathing heavily, her arms and legs shaking from the effort it took to hold herself up. The bow she'd created quickly dissolved, having only been strong enough for that one shot, and Mayumi was left running on fumes. That one attack had taken everything she had.

Even so, both Servants were fully aware that if that attack had been allowed to find its target, then Rider would have been finished, killed before the Grail War had even officially begun. Rider stared at the exhausted master with wide eyes, not bothering to hide her shock.

After a long moment, Rider's swords vanished in a shower of red sparks once more, and the black arrow clattered to the ground before dissolving just as the bow had. Rider brushed her hands together and sighed as she shook her head. "Well now... Not bad at all... You actually almost had me." She said casually. "It's a shame that that attack drained you so badly. If you could have repeated that, then you might have actually kept me entertained for a while, yourself. That's no small feat for a mere human. You're quite the mage, kid."

Lancer stepped in front of his master, then, crouching in a defensive posture as he prepared to fend off another attack. His shogun no longer had the energy to defend herself or support him, so it was all up to him now. "That was amazing, shogun. Please rest up as much as you can. Leave this to me." He said solemnly.

However, he was then taken aback when Rider simply put her hands up in surrender. "No worries." She said simply. "To be honest, I'm actually not supposed to take you guys out, anyway. My master just wanted me to see what you could do. And I think I've got a pretty good idea of your skill levels now. So, now that I know the extent of your abilities, it's time for me to report back." Rider flashed them a cocky grin as she turned to walk away. Before leaving, however, she looked over her shoulder with a smirk. "Though, if you want to chase me down... I suppose my master can't get angry if I have to kill you guys in self-defense."

With that, Rider walked away, throwing back a carefree wave in their direction before dissolving in blue sparks as she returned to her spirit form.

As soon as she was gone, Mayumi's knees hit the ground, and she slumped forwards in exhaustion, barely supporting herself on her hands. Lancer was beside her a moment later, a hand on her shoulder in support.

"I'm sorry, shogun. I failed you. I've dishonored myself as much as I've dishonored you." He said softly, his head hung low in shame.

Mayumi took a deep breath, letting it out slowly as she tried to collect herself. Then, she stood again on still-shaky legs as she looked at Lancer. "You... You're..." She stammered, then took another deep breath to calm herself. She then scowled at Lancer and crossed her arms. "You're absolutely right!" She said sharply.

Lancer looked up at her in surprise. "Shog-"

"You absolutely failed me, Lancer! You should be utterly ashamed of yourself! What kind of samurai fails to earn a victory for their shogun?"

Lancer's shoulders sank slightly, and he looked back down at the ground, ready to accept his punishment for failure.

He was surprised once again a moment later as he felt his master's hand on his shoulder, imitating his gesture of support from only a minute earlier. He looked up once again to see Mayumi smiling kindly at him.

"So just don't fail me next time, okay?"

Lancer's face was frozen in surprise for a second before he schooled his features and nodded in agreement, determination to serve his shogun faithfully renewed as a fire burned in his dark eyes.

"Yes, shogun." He said, standing tall once more, then looked towards the spot where Rider had disappeared. "Next time, Rider... Next time, I will claim victory for my master, and restore my honor. I swear it."

* * *

_5 days later_

_Fuyuki Church; February 10, 2024_

"-protector of the holy balance!"

The young priest-mage's mana surged, red light exploding throughout the room as he completed his incantation. He shielded his eyes to protect them from the blinding light, then waited for the whirlwind to die down before he uncovered his face. His silver cross necklace settled against his chest, and he gazed upon his Servant.

"Are you... my master?" The woman standing before him asked, her black hair tied back in a bun with a single bang hanging down in front of her face. Her deep, green eyes bored into his, as if daring him to declare himself her master.

He rose to the challenge, however, steeling his nerves as he nodded and produced the command seals on his left hand. "Yes, Assassin. I, Ryouta Kotomine, am your master."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Sorry it took so long for me to get this out, guys. The holidays are kind of a crazy time for me, so I haven't had a whole lot of free time for, like, the past week. Between prepping for Thanksgiving and getting out the Christmas decorations, I've been going nonstop since LAST Sunday. Anyway, I hope this chapter makes up for my absence! Please let me know what you guys think!
> 
> Also, sorry if the combat scene isn't the best. I'm not used to writing those kinds of scenes, so let me know if there's anything I can do to improve them in the future!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys. This is my first time posting as an author here on AO3. I've been on FFN for a few years now, but after all the trouble the site's been having lately, I decided to try my luck here, instead. I'm hoping this proves to be a better platform than FFN. If all goes well, I'll definitely be moving here more permanently. 
> 
> Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed this first chapter! Please leave a comment and let me know what you think. If you guys liked it well enough, I'll try to have the next chapter up within a week.
> 
> Until next time!


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